Let's
go back and apply, as it were, a second coat of paint to the
territory we've covered so far. This is in order to deepen, consolidate and
integrate the learning and experiential nature of what we're
discussing. Learning without integration and experience is just an
exercise in mental masturbation, and God knows we have enough of
that!
An
experiential way into rude awakening is to do something different
than the way you usually do it, it can be anything; putting on your left shoe
first when you usually put on your right, get up on the opposite side
of the bed, write with your non-dominate hand, be intentionally quite
in a meeting, eating less than you usually do, etc. This is a
conscious and intentional act that will elicit some kind of response.
What you are doing is proactively applying a mini shock to your
system, granted it's not that big of a deal to put a different shoe
on first, but it will give you some information and bring
consciousness to something that has become an unconscious habit.
You
may also notice how robotic and automatic you were in your usual
routine and how alive and aware you are when you change it. From a
biological perspective, we are adaptive organisms that get selected
and reinforced for automatic behaviors that require little to no meta
awareness. This is because doing things in a predictable, rote manner
uses less energy and becomes optimally efficient. Hunting and
gathering in the same way that produces relatively quick and easy
food is an advantage to survival. If our ancestors had to think,
discuss and have meetings to share and reach consensus on these
issues they wouldn't be our ancestors.
However,
as our frontal lobes evolved, we developed more and more capacity to
reflect, consider alternatives, strategize, question, and become more
and more curious. These human traits evolved our ability to be more
and more conscious, more civilized, more cooperative, and able to
observe our processes and see if they are helping or hindering
our well being.
There
is still a big push in our modern world to keep us on automatic
pilot, mechanical, compliant, and purely on digital
approach/avoidance mode. So when we interrupt our conditioning and
start doing things differently we will get a shock that will rattle
the automatic nature of our daily existence. Try to embrace some
simple change in your habits and see how much awareness this
engenders.
When I'm working with people trying to quit smoking I get
them to do everything with the opposite hand; i.e. get the lighter
and cigs out with opposite hand, hold the cigarette in the opposite
hand, light with opposite hand, light the lighter and hold for count
of 5 before lighting, etc. It's amazing to see how this really messes
with a person's ritual, it basically ruins the whole experience! This
is because the usual ritual is an unconscious habit that is enjoyable
because it is so unconscious. When a person is forced to think,
observe, and feel themselves going through these mechanical habits
they awaken to a level of awareness not accessed previously. This is
unsettling, but mostly liberating!
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